Use of the Hall drill for suturing severely calcified aortas

Heavily calcified aortic and iliac arteries are occasionally encountered that will not yield to currently available needles and sutures. The use of the Hall drill to penetrate such arterial walls, stopping short of the adventitial layer, and Teflon strips to buttress the anastomosis, is an effective means of dealing with this problem. Extensive arterial trauma is avoided and a hemostatic anastomosis may be constructed.